What do you think?
Rate this book
Beer Blast: The Inside Story of the Brewing Industry's Bizarre Battles for Your Money
Brewing, a venerable American industry, once was dominated by family-owned firms serving a loyal clientele. In the late 1970s, however, the conglomerates got involved, and the beer wars erupted. In Beer Blast, a veteran of the beer wars (from the famous Van Munching clan, importers of Heineken) shares his wealth of colorful, often amazing stories about the personalities, battles, and follies of the beer biz.
From the Hardcover edition.
From the Hardcover edition.
309 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1997
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews
February 19, 2020
I'm living in the land of sky blue waters,
And I'm grabbing all the gusto up it's true.
Well, you only go around
Once in life they say
And when I'm out of love I'm out of you.*
I bet few of you would disagree with me if I said the best thing about American beer is its advertising. After every year's Super Bowl, beer commercials consistently rank among the most popular, and catch-phrases uttered in these ads become part of our every day lexicon. (Wassup, anyone?)
If the Van Munching name sounds familiar, it's because the author is from THOSE Van Munchings, longtime US importers of Heineken, so he does know his beer. This book was published in 1997, so facts and figures are a wee bit dated, but still quite interesting to anyone curious about how huge corporations decide to promote their products.
The development of light beer in the late sixties may seem like a negligible moment in history, something akin to the launch of the Edsel, perhaps, but THIS was actually the start of the Beer Wars. The race to get a product onto the shelves and down the gullets of consumers had begun. And companies spared NO expense!
In 1975, American breweries spent $140 million dollars to advertise the 147 million barrels they produced. Twenty years later, spending had increased 500 percent! Almost twenty years after that...well, one 30-second spot in 2013's Super Bowl cost almost 4 million...so let's just say...it's nuts!
Van Munching (Yes, I love saying his name!) does a credible job of telling the story of beer in America. He starts with the history of the major breweries, discusses the prestige of imports vs draft beer, and tells the story of how a female bull terrier named Honey Tree Evil Eye became famous as hard-partying Spuds MacKenzie. I had a nice trip down memory lane, as I had completely forgotten there was a time that Coors was not available east of the Rockies, and I was reminded of some radio spots I used to love put out by Molson, featuring Garrett Brown and Ann Winn, the Molson Couple. ( https://www.twovoices.com/hear - scroll down to Molson.)
In the later chapters, the author recounts how marketing was geared to push malt liquor on "inner city" residents (Nice euphemism!) and discusses some failed attempts to introduce "new" beers, like Dry, Ice, and something called Miller Clear, for those who'd grown tired of those nasty, opaque beers, I guess. And speaking of clear beverages, let's pause to remember the almost forgotten Zima. Fortune magazine conducted an informal poll, and found that the taste of Zima compared to "tonic water, antifreeze, and crushed Sweet Tart candies mixed with skunked Molson." So there. If your product stinks, no amount of marketing in the world can make it sell.
And now, just for fun, let's play - - -
NAME THAT BEER!
1) The Champagne of Beers
2) From the land of sky blue waters
3) The beer that made Milwaukee famous
4) Everything you ever wanted in a beer. And less.
5) It's the water
6) The King of Beers
7) One beer to have when you're having more than one
8) You want to take away my gusto?
Also, here's an off-color joke about Coors that made me snort:
And on that note...
*Hear John Prine sing an entire song comprised of old beer slogans -
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8cTin...
And I'm grabbing all the gusto up it's true.
Well, you only go around
Once in life they say
And when I'm out of love I'm out of you.*
I bet few of you would disagree with me if I said the best thing about American beer is its advertising. After every year's Super Bowl, beer commercials consistently rank among the most popular, and catch-phrases uttered in these ads become part of our every day lexicon. (Wassup, anyone?)
If the Van Munching name sounds familiar, it's because the author is from THOSE Van Munchings, longtime US importers of Heineken, so he does know his beer. This book was published in 1997, so facts and figures are a wee bit dated, but still quite interesting to anyone curious about how huge corporations decide to promote their products.
The development of light beer in the late sixties may seem like a negligible moment in history, something akin to the launch of the Edsel, perhaps, but THIS was actually the start of the Beer Wars. The race to get a product onto the shelves and down the gullets of consumers had begun. And companies spared NO expense!
In 1975, American breweries spent $140 million dollars to advertise the 147 million barrels they produced. Twenty years later, spending had increased 500 percent! Almost twenty years after that...well, one 30-second spot in 2013's Super Bowl cost almost 4 million...so let's just say...it's nuts!
Van Munching (Yes, I love saying his name!) does a credible job of telling the story of beer in America. He starts with the history of the major breweries, discusses the prestige of imports vs draft beer, and tells the story of how a female bull terrier named Honey Tree Evil Eye became famous as hard-partying Spuds MacKenzie. I had a nice trip down memory lane, as I had completely forgotten there was a time that Coors was not available east of the Rockies, and I was reminded of some radio spots I used to love put out by Molson, featuring Garrett Brown and Ann Winn, the Molson Couple. ( https://www.twovoices.com/hear - scroll down to Molson.)
In the later chapters, the author recounts how marketing was geared to push malt liquor on "inner city" residents (Nice euphemism!) and discusses some failed attempts to introduce "new" beers, like Dry, Ice, and something called Miller Clear, for those who'd grown tired of those nasty, opaque beers, I guess. And speaking of clear beverages, let's pause to remember the almost forgotten Zima. Fortune magazine conducted an informal poll, and found that the taste of Zima compared to "tonic water, antifreeze, and crushed Sweet Tart candies mixed with skunked Molson." So there. If your product stinks, no amount of marketing in the world can make it sell.
And now, just for fun, let's play - - -
NAME THAT BEER!
1) The Champagne of Beers
2) From the land of sky blue waters
3) The beer that made Milwaukee famous
4) Everything you ever wanted in a beer. And less.
5) It's the water
6) The King of Beers
7) One beer to have when you're having more than one
8) You want to take away my gusto?
Also, here's an off-color joke about Coors that made me snort:
And on that note...
*Hear John Prine sing an entire song comprised of old beer slogans -
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8cTin...
November 30, 2015
The history of beer in America and all the crazy stuff that gets done to sell it, all the in-fighting, all the idiotic decisions and lack of common sense, all the bigger than life personalities of the founders and owners of beer companies. It is a lot of fun to read. Personally, I don't drink beer or any alcohol. My last beer was probably in high school during the mid 1970's. I think it was Coors. I also don't watch sports, so I am unfamiliar with beer commercials. If you had asked me, before I read this book, for a beer slogan I probably could have come up with "This Bud's for you". So I am someone who really does not know beer. But that didn't stop me from enjoying this book, it is interesting reading. Statistics wise it doesn't look like things are so different now than when the book was published in 1997. Excluding microbrews, you still have Budweiser at the top. Bud Light is the best selling beer in America, Budweiser is third best selling, and they are still fooling around with ICE and lime flavors. Coors Light is the second best selling beer and Miller Light is the fourth best selling beer. Corona comes in fifth. On the list of the top twenty we still see Michelob Ultra, Heineken of 3 types, Miller High Life and Pabst Blue Ribbon. Lots of microbrews around which sound interesting. And even gluten free beer which doesn't have all bad reviews. Interesting world of beers out there.
August 6, 2007
Beer Blast could be categorized into two separate genres: business marketing and history. Considering the subject matter, beer being sold in America, and me being a history nut I thought, 'worst comes to worst I'll read the history half of this book and dump it when the boring business section comes along.'
However, Van Munching writes a very personal, very humorous account of what methods the "Big Beer Companies" (read: assholes) use to convince us, the ignorant consumers, to purchase their brew above any others. I was surprised and saddened to hear how Schlitz dropped the ball and, subsequently, their future.
The 'business' section that I described was one-sided and personal. However, it was thoroughly readable and enjoyable. Van Munching was the third of his lineage to work with Heineken America (his grandfather and father were both successful presidents of the company), so his accounts of the obnoxious Jim Koch of Samuel Adams infamy, Corona 'Mexican Piss Beer,' and the fake Lowenbrau all read as informative, but bitter.
Fortunately, the few aspects of this book that read unprofessionally do not detract from the entertaining overall message. After checking the book's sources, I see that Van Munching referenced one book very heavily, so I will be looking that work up in the future.
However, Van Munching writes a very personal, very humorous account of what methods the "Big Beer Companies" (read: assholes) use to convince us, the ignorant consumers, to purchase their brew above any others. I was surprised and saddened to hear how Schlitz dropped the ball and, subsequently, their future.
The 'business' section that I described was one-sided and personal. However, it was thoroughly readable and enjoyable. Van Munching was the third of his lineage to work with Heineken America (his grandfather and father were both successful presidents of the company), so his accounts of the obnoxious Jim Koch of Samuel Adams infamy, Corona 'Mexican Piss Beer,' and the fake Lowenbrau all read as informative, but bitter.
Fortunately, the few aspects of this book that read unprofessionally do not detract from the entertaining overall message. After checking the book's sources, I see that Van Munching referenced one book very heavily, so I will be looking that work up in the future.
December 24, 2008
This would be 4.5/5.0 stars, but Van Munching gets derailed in the later half of the book.
This is an interesting, and not too in depth, look at the marketing efforts of beer companies to garner drinkers throughout American history, particularly the 20th century (written in 96'). Brings up lots of strategies, anecdotes, etc that are interesting without being too overly detailed.
Van Munching is the Grandson of the man that made Heinken the top import in America for 50 years. Although his family plays a role in the beer story, it certainly didn't deserve a lot of the 70 pages or so near the end of the book that focused on the inner workings of the company.
Also... nothing before Boston Brewing Company in the 1990's about the growth/stagnation/explosion of craft brewing in America. Like a lot of big brands, I think he personally underappreciates how much better most craft brews are in comparision to major brewery products.
A quick and enjoyable read, and you could skip chapters 11 - 15.
This is an interesting, and not too in depth, look at the marketing efforts of beer companies to garner drinkers throughout American history, particularly the 20th century (written in 96'). Brings up lots of strategies, anecdotes, etc that are interesting without being too overly detailed.
Van Munching is the Grandson of the man that made Heinken the top import in America for 50 years. Although his family plays a role in the beer story, it certainly didn't deserve a lot of the 70 pages or so near the end of the book that focused on the inner workings of the company.
Also... nothing before Boston Brewing Company in the 1990's about the growth/stagnation/explosion of craft brewing in America. Like a lot of big brands, I think he personally underappreciates how much better most craft brews are in comparision to major brewery products.
A quick and enjoyable read, and you could skip chapters 11 - 15.
March 27, 2014
Clearly written, coherent, and such a compelling narrative.
Great topic to start, of course--beer is interesting. But, Van Munching is a story teller, a damn compelling one. I was thoroughly entertained while reading this. But Van Munching also educated me.
I learned about Jim Koch and the value of hustling and disrupting. I learned about ambitious marketers trying to make a name for themselves, and why they should not seek change for the sake of change. I learned about a myriad of deceptive techniques and murky secrets of the brewing industry.
There are tons of marketing lessons, and life lessons, within this book.
Does Van Munching have any other books out? I'd read them.
Great topic to start, of course--beer is interesting. But, Van Munching is a story teller, a damn compelling one. I was thoroughly entertained while reading this. But Van Munching also educated me.
I learned about Jim Koch and the value of hustling and disrupting. I learned about ambitious marketers trying to make a name for themselves, and why they should not seek change for the sake of change. I learned about a myriad of deceptive techniques and murky secrets of the brewing industry.
There are tons of marketing lessons, and life lessons, within this book.
Does Van Munching have any other books out? I'd read them.
July 16, 2009
Beer marketing over the last 50 years as told by the family that had the U.S. distribution rights for Heineken Beer. If you like beer and remember Spuds McKenzie, the Coors mystique, the invention of light beer, Corona, et al, you will enjoy reading about the beer wars and how the big players in the market tried to market their beers.
August 16, 2007
Should be used as a great text book on business advertising!
January 9, 2021
An insider's tell it all account of the American beer industry during the eighties and nineties. Admission: I wore a Spud McKenzie T shirt to High School and I drank Zima clear beer.
January 7, 2024
The first 2/3s of Beer Blast is a general history of the U.S. beer industry. That history goes like this: in the later 19th century beer sales soared. Beer had been around for much longer, of course, but Americans primarily drank whiskey. The rise of beer was driven by the wave of German immigrants, and (ironically) by the temperance movement. Beer was promoted as less intoxicating alternative to hard liquor.
Initially beer was an exclusively local business. The low price/weight ratio, poor refrigeration technology, and limited shelf-life all meant that beer needed to be sold and consumed pretty close to where it was produced. In 1865 there were 2,252 small breweries produced an average of 1,643 barrels of beer.
Over the next fifty years technical and macroeconomic changes, along with a handful of aggressively expansionist brewery owners drove industry concentration. By 1915, the number of breweries had declined by about 40%, but the average size had increased more than 2,500%, to over 44,000 barrels.
Low-cost rail shipping enabled companies like Schlitz, Blatz, Pabst, and Anheuser-Busch to ship their products over entire regions from massive factories in Milwaukee and St. Louis. Even so, the industry was still quite fragmented compared to today. Before prohibition, no individual firm produced more than 2% of U.S. beer.
Prohibition reshaped the industry. The legal beer industry shut down for 13 years, and when it started again in 1934, another 40% of the companies had been wiped out. The next several years saw additional consolidation, and by the end of World War Two, the top 5 brewers controlled 19% of the U.S. Beer Market.
How people consumed beer had changed, though. Before prohibition, most beer (around 90%) was sold on draft at bars. Canned beer didn't exist, and bottled beer was substantially more expensive than draft; plus, most people had no way to refrigerate beer. Canning lines required large initial capital investment in equipment, but the cans had very low unit costs. This drove further consolidation, as the large brewers used their superior economic position to spend heavily on advertising.
This trend accelerated when Philip Morris bought Miller, at the time a mid-sized regional brewer. They started pouring profits from their cigarette business into an effort to make them the nation's largest brewer. The result was continued consolidation and by 1980 the industry was down to just 101 breweries, with the five largest producing 75.9% of all beer, and by 2000 the big three controlled over 80% of production.
The last third of the book switches the focus a bit. The author belongs to the unfortunately named Van Munching family, which brought Heineken to the United States and established it as the number one import in the country.
Heineken could never compete with the big U.S. brewers on cost. It had to be shipped across the Atlantic. So, instead, Heineken branded itself as higher quality. The premium price was justified by the fact that it was imported from Europe, where people were known to be fancier.
Van Munching talks quite a bit about what would and would not be on brand for Heineken. It's ads were classy and understated - no talking frogs for them. When some neophyte marketer suggested a gimmick involving a wet t-shirt contest, it just went to show how poorly he understood the brand. Van Munching had no moral or ideological issues with such promotions, but he knew the attendees would be drinking domestic.
The movie Blue Velvet illustrated the class distinctions of beer drinkers in the late 80s. When the deranged Frank (Dennis Hopper) spots a yuppie (Kyle MacLachlan) drinking Heineken, he yells "Heineken? Fuck that shit! Pabst Blue Ribbon!" The exchange reinforced the reputations of both brands. It also reinforced the idea that the beer a person drank said a lot about the type of person they were.
Because craft brewers couldn't possibly hope to compete with the majors on price they had to position themselves as a premium products. That meant competing with imports, which dominated the premium segment at the time. In this context, Boston Beer's Jim Koch comes off as rather sleazy. His beer, Sam Adams, was the overtly "patriotic" alternative to "un-American" brands like Heineken. Van Munching is relatively sanguine about this, but he clearly sees Koch as an opportunistic marketing person, not a great brewing innovator.
Overall I'd give the book four stars. It's an interesting read for people who're already interested in the beer business, but not so compelling that I'd recommend it to just anyone.
Initially beer was an exclusively local business. The low price/weight ratio, poor refrigeration technology, and limited shelf-life all meant that beer needed to be sold and consumed pretty close to where it was produced. In 1865 there were 2,252 small breweries produced an average of 1,643 barrels of beer.
Over the next fifty years technical and macroeconomic changes, along with a handful of aggressively expansionist brewery owners drove industry concentration. By 1915, the number of breweries had declined by about 40%, but the average size had increased more than 2,500%, to over 44,000 barrels.
Low-cost rail shipping enabled companies like Schlitz, Blatz, Pabst, and Anheuser-Busch to ship their products over entire regions from massive factories in Milwaukee and St. Louis. Even so, the industry was still quite fragmented compared to today. Before prohibition, no individual firm produced more than 2% of U.S. beer.
Prohibition reshaped the industry. The legal beer industry shut down for 13 years, and when it started again in 1934, another 40% of the companies had been wiped out. The next several years saw additional consolidation, and by the end of World War Two, the top 5 brewers controlled 19% of the U.S. Beer Market.
How people consumed beer had changed, though. Before prohibition, most beer (around 90%) was sold on draft at bars. Canned beer didn't exist, and bottled beer was substantially more expensive than draft; plus, most people had no way to refrigerate beer. Canning lines required large initial capital investment in equipment, but the cans had very low unit costs. This drove further consolidation, as the large brewers used their superior economic position to spend heavily on advertising.
This trend accelerated when Philip Morris bought Miller, at the time a mid-sized regional brewer. They started pouring profits from their cigarette business into an effort to make them the nation's largest brewer. The result was continued consolidation and by 1980 the industry was down to just 101 breweries, with the five largest producing 75.9% of all beer, and by 2000 the big three controlled over 80% of production.
The last third of the book switches the focus a bit. The author belongs to the unfortunately named Van Munching family, which brought Heineken to the United States and established it as the number one import in the country.
Heineken could never compete with the big U.S. brewers on cost. It had to be shipped across the Atlantic. So, instead, Heineken branded itself as higher quality. The premium price was justified by the fact that it was imported from Europe, where people were known to be fancier.
Van Munching talks quite a bit about what would and would not be on brand for Heineken. It's ads were classy and understated - no talking frogs for them. When some neophyte marketer suggested a gimmick involving a wet t-shirt contest, it just went to show how poorly he understood the brand. Van Munching had no moral or ideological issues with such promotions, but he knew the attendees would be drinking domestic.
The movie Blue Velvet illustrated the class distinctions of beer drinkers in the late 80s. When the deranged Frank (Dennis Hopper) spots a yuppie (Kyle MacLachlan) drinking Heineken, he yells "Heineken? Fuck that shit! Pabst Blue Ribbon!" The exchange reinforced the reputations of both brands. It also reinforced the idea that the beer a person drank said a lot about the type of person they were.
Because craft brewers couldn't possibly hope to compete with the majors on price they had to position themselves as a premium products. That meant competing with imports, which dominated the premium segment at the time. In this context, Boston Beer's Jim Koch comes off as rather sleazy. His beer, Sam Adams, was the overtly "patriotic" alternative to "un-American" brands like Heineken. Van Munching is relatively sanguine about this, but he clearly sees Koch as an opportunistic marketing person, not a great brewing innovator.
Overall I'd give the book four stars. It's an interesting read for people who're already interested in the beer business, but not so compelling that I'd recommend it to just anyone.
October 30, 2009
you always knew the beer barons of america were capable of evil, but now you know the specific details of some of the schenanigans they pulled.
it's an interesting read, especially if you're interested in beer and business like i am. really makes me despise the big 3 (or big 2 or whatever) even more, though.
however, i had a few nitpicks that i couldn't get over:
at times, i found the writer's style annoying. for some reason, his insistence on talking directly to the reader, combined with his sarcasm came off really snarky. some sarcasm doesn't usually bother me, but because the author previously worked at a beer importer that was in direct competition with the guys he was bashing on, it just made him seem whiny, petty, and defensive. don't get me wrong - i would never defend any of the actions of the evil huge american beer companies - but when the book purports to be a "crazy story of the american beer industry" and is instead "guy working at imported beer company trying to set the record straight," you can't help but to feel a little hoodwinked.
it's an interesting read, especially if you're interested in beer and business like i am. really makes me despise the big 3 (or big 2 or whatever) even more, though.
however, i had a few nitpicks that i couldn't get over:
at times, i found the writer's style annoying. for some reason, his insistence on talking directly to the reader, combined with his sarcasm came off really snarky. some sarcasm doesn't usually bother me, but because the author previously worked at a beer importer that was in direct competition with the guys he was bashing on, it just made him seem whiny, petty, and defensive. don't get me wrong - i would never defend any of the actions of the evil huge american beer companies - but when the book purports to be a "crazy story of the american beer industry" and is instead "guy working at imported beer company trying to set the record straight," you can't help but to feel a little hoodwinked.
Read
August 10, 2011Great synopsis of the beer marketing wars, mostly between Miller and Anheuser-Busch through the mid 90s. Everything from wine coolers to malt liquor as well as the flagship brands are discussed here. Provides a lot of insight into brand loyalty and how exactly to stay on top of the marketing heap. I only wish he had a new edition chronicling the rise of microbrews in the 2000s.
December 14, 2012
“Beer Blast” is a fun, although sometimes discouraging rush through the varied history of success’ and failures in the beer wars of North America. Although it could use an update from the late 90’s it is still relevant today and certainly worth the read.
Read
May 18, 2009I liked the insight, i live right next to coors, so brewing is well thought of around here.
January 7, 2012
Philip is slightly cynical as he is clearly burnt out on the industry, but has put together a very readable recap on the beer industry between the 1970s and 1990s.
November 30, 2014
Interesting angle behind the scenes on the marketing-side of the beer business, particularly the big players. LOTS of pages spent on Heineken - distractingly so.
Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews